For years now, one of the most persistent Detroit Pistons trade rumors has been linked to Phoenix Suns star guard Devin Booker. Booker, a native of Michigan, has a playstyle that lends well to fitting in with a variety of rosters, making him an enticing trade target. However, Cade Cunningham can finally silence those rumors by having a superior performance to Booker next season.
Devin Booker is an unrealistic trade for the Pistons
From a financial perspective trading for Booker just doesn’t make sense for the Pistons. His most recent contract extension puts him over $70 million per season in upcoming years. This is a gargantuan amount that makes it hard to build a team around him.
Furthermore, Booker's performance on the court has declined slightly in the last couple of seasons. He hasn’t been quite as effective as he was in 2021 and 2022, which has also contributed to the Phoenix Suns having early playoff exits or not even making the postseason.
Last season, Booker failed to make an All-NBA team while Detroit’s own Cade Cunningham made the third team All-NBA. Still, Booker is generally regarded as a better player at the moment than Cade. Certainly, his scoring ability is superior and he strikes more fear into opposing defenses as an established first option.
However, Cade does have some clear advantages over Booker - namely his playmaking. Cade is a proper point guard while Booker is really a shooting guard who is often overtasked with playing point in Phoenix. As a result, Cade is able to elevate his teammates in a way that Booker simply cannot.
Even defensively, you could argue that Cade is better than Booker due to his help instincts. Both are a similar size, but Cade has better timing helping block shots as the low man. This is a unique skill for a guard which unlocks another dimension for the Pistons defense and allows teammates to be more aggressive.
Furthermore, Cade‘s contract is much cheaper in the foreseeable future. That’s kind of a weird statement to make about a guy making over $50 million per season but that’s still a significant discount compared to Booker’s $70 million. The $20 million difference can easily land you a solid starter or 6th man.
If Cade Cunningham can prove definitively next season that he’s better than Devin Booker, there will be a lot less enthusiasm from Pistons fans to trade for a $70 million player to be the second option. Pistons are always eager to get Cade a capable co-star, but it's just nore realistic with Booker. Booker is a great player right now, but his contract makes it hard to trade for him or to build a solid contender around him.